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2014 was not a good one for women in the Middle East. Political turmoil, civil war, the rise of Islamic State, clampdowns by autocratic governments, and the ineffectiveness of reformist governments all contributed to unfavorable, even worsening, conditions for women, writes Haleh Esfandiari. more

"After four years of the phenomenon once optimistically dubbed the Arab Spring, the changes that have roiled those lands seem to have validated Robert Penn Warren’s quip that history, like nature, rarely jumps–and when it does, it usually jumps backward," writes Aaron David Miller. more

"The worst outcome would be another open-ended, treasury-sapping, coffin-producing, and increasingly unpopular war that fails to erase ISIS or resurrect Iraq. The Middle East has a proven record of sucking us in and spitting us out," writes Robin Wright. more

2014 was not a good one for women in the Middle East. Political turmoil, civil war, the rise of Islamic State, clampdowns by autocratic governments, and the ineffectiveness of reformist governments all contributed to unfavorable, even worsening, conditions for women, writes Haleh Esfandiari.

"After four years of the phenomenon once optimistically dubbed the Arab Spring, the changes that have roiled those lands seem to have validated Robert Penn Warren’s quip that history, like nature, rarely jumps–and when it does, it usually jumps backward," writes Aaron David Miller.

"The worst outcome would be another open-ended, treasury-sapping, coffin-producing, and increasingly unpopular war that fails to erase ISIS or resurrect Iraq. The Middle East has a proven record of sucking us in and spitting us out," writes Robin Wright.

In stark contrast to the euphoria after elections more than two years ago, Islamist political parties across the Middle East now face escalating challenges to their rule. The main drama is playing out in Egypt between the army and the Muslim Brotherhood. But Islamist parties in Tunisia, Libya are also under pressure from emboldened opposition movements.

As dictatorships fall, parties tied to the Arab world’s conservative religious tradition are getting stronger. An expert panel looks at what this means for the US, Israel, and the world—drawing on the new book, The Islamists Are Coming, by Center expert Robin Wright.

What are the implications for the ongoing challenges to international order and American security posed by states such as Iran and North Korea? How can states that egregiously violate international norms be reintegrated into the “family” or “community” of nations?

Vice President for Programs and Director of International Security Studies at the Woodrow Wilson Center Robert Litwak answers some of the biggest questions surrounding the relationship between today's "Rogue States" (North Korea, Libya, Iran) and the United States.

U.S. policy toward the Maghreb countries is presently driven above all by security concerns. Although three of the four countries—Morocco, Tunisia, and Libya—have experienced considerable political change since 2011 and Algeria is on the verge of a succession crisis with potentially significant consequences, the United States is not deeply involved in these transitions. Exhausted and disappointed by failed nation-building efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan, the United States seems to be moving toward the opposite extreme, neglecting political transformations to focus on security. Unless the countries restore or maintain political stability, however, counterterrorism efforts cannot succeed

China was exporting nuclear materials to Third World countries without safeguards beginning in the early 1980s, and may have given Pakistan weapons design information in the early years of its clandestine program, according to recently declassified CIA records.

Journalist and Author/Editor of eight books, most recently editor of "The Islamists Are Coming: Who They Really Are"

Robin Wright is a journalist, author and foreign policy analyst. She is currently a USIP Senior Fellow-Wilson Center Distinguished Scholar.
Her projects explore new trends in the Islamic world--the Arab revolts, the rise and fall of political Islam, and future of the Middle East, and new U.S.-Iran...